Dixie T. (Thompson) Armour

December 13, 1926 - August 28, 2011

Dixie Armour, formerly of El Dorado, passed from this life on Sunday, August 28, 2011, at The Pines Nursing and Rehab Center in Hot Springs, Arkansas. She was a courageous lady who devoted her life to raising her sons and daughters. She asked only to be remembered as the "mother of six children."

Born Dixie Juanita Thompson, she entered this world on December 13, 1926, near Homer, Claiborne Parish, Louisiana. She was the second daughter of the late Elbert and Bertha Lee Amanda Baker Thompson and one of five children. She spent her earliest years in north Louisiana and Arkadelphia, Arkansas. The family moved to El Dorado around the time Dixie was a young teen and she graduated from El Dorado High School in 1945.

Throughout her adolescence, Dixie worked at the Rialto Theatre at night and on weekends. She always said those were some of her happiest days and left her with some of her best memories. She used the money she earned at the movie theatre to buy fabric which she fashioned into a new outfit each weekend. She was proud of her skill as a seamstress as were her three sisters. Much to her dismay and unknown to her much of the time, her sisters would wear her creations out on the town when Dixie would be working.

After high school, Dixie used the shorthand and typing skills she learned in school to gain employment at the Shumaker Naval Depot near Camden. She loved her job, but didn't like having to ride to and from Camden every day. When the youngest of her children entered school, Dixie was hired by Lion Oil. She worked in the credit department where her expertise earned her the position of executive assistant to the head of the department where she remained when Lion Oil was acquired by Tosco. She was proud of her job and worked hard to provide for her family. She retired from Tosco in 1981. After retirement, she worked for a time at Prescolite.

Dixie was proudest of the fact that all six children, which included two sets of twins, earned undergraduate degrees from Henderson State University in Arkadelphia. She had dedicated her life to providing each child with the ability and perseverance to become the best individuals they could be. To them, Dixie left her legacy of determination, hard work, and a smile.

Dixie was preceded in death by her parents; a brother, Edwin Thompson of Houston, TX; Jean Wright of Decatur, AL, Hazel Burrow of Orange, TX; and sons-in-law, Brad Bell and Michael Griffith. She leaves her sister, Violet Thompson of Hot Springs.